When is Thanksgiving 2017? Why do Americans celebrate it?

It's only one more sleep before Thanksgiving and if, like me, you have learned all your Turkey Day knowledge from a decade worth of FriendsThanksgiving episodes, then you would be mistaken for thinking it sounds a lot like Christmas 2.0.

But, as it turns out, there is a whole lot of history behind the day before Black Friday. Here's everything you need to know:

When is Thanksgiving?

This year, Thanksgiving falls on Thursday November 23 . It always falls on the fourth Thursday in November.

What is Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving is what traditionally kicks off the holiday season in the US. It wasn’t an official holiday until President Franklin D. Roosevelt made it so in 1939 and was approved by congress in 1941.

It's actually a bigger holiday in the UK as, being a secular holiday, more people celebrate it.

Why do people celebrate Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving can be traced back to 1621 where refugees from England, known as Pilgrims, invited the local Native Americans to a harvest feast after they experienced a successful season of produce growth.

The first Thanksgiving did not include turkey, but rather a three-day feast of goose, lobster, cod and deer.

Why do Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving?

Americans eat over 50 million turkeys at Thanksgiving and while there are multiple claims as to why turkeys are used, the most likely would be because turkeys are native to North America and would have been an easy choice for the early settlers.

However, one lucky turkey is given the Presidential pardon each year. This year, Donald Trump will pardon his first turkey.